Dan Griffin, Year 12

I’m Dan and I’m now in 12 KDL in the sixth form at Lawnswood
studying three A-levels plus the EPQ (Extended Project Qualification).

My last
post on the website was posted during the spring term of Year 11 and so a lot
has happened since then.

Since the last article and since completing my GCSE’s during
summer 2016, I’ve successfully passed the flight test and 9 exams that are
required to gain a Private Pilot’s license and so can now fly light aircraft
with passengers for pleasure. It was hard work and took 18 months to complete
with a total of 45 hours of flight training including a mix of solo flying and
flights with an instructor however the benefit is now that I can rent an
aircraft and go flying for the day with friends and family.

As I’m aiming for a career in the aviation industry and more
specifically in the RAF as a pilot, the flying that I am currently doing is
building my experience but allows me to see things that most do not see, as
seen in the photos on the right. Taking an aircraft up for an hour or two into
the winter sun on a Sunday morning is one of the things
that I most look forward to doing and sharing with friends and family that come
with me.

In addition to the PPL flying which I completed over the
weekends, I have progressed further to the rank of Flight Sergeant within the
Air Training Corps (Air Cadets) and I’m currently the most senior cadet NCO
(non-commissioned officer) on the squadron.

The organisation has given me a lot of responsibility as on a
single parade night I can be responsible with the team of other NCO’s for up to
35 cadets and ensuring that everyone is on task under the guidance of the
senior squadron staff while managing the cadets and the tasks that they are
doing. The Air Cadets has given me a lot of the skills and confidence that I
have today and so it is a great organisation that I would recommend joining to
anyone from the age of 12+ (The maximum recruitment age is 16y 6m) as it gives
opportunities that would not normally be available to people my age such as
shooting, flying, adventure training and sports among others, all at a small
cost per month.